ocdmonkey wrote:

I'm wanting to use my new 5160 with a PS/2 KVM switch, but it refuses to recognize the keyboard with either of the KVM switches I have on hand. I'm using an adapter cable to convert the PS/2 keyboard connection into the AT DIN connection and it works just fine if I plug the keyboard directly into it, but going through the switch I always get an error after POST. The switch works just fine with a computer with a PS/2 connection. Any ideas?

Is the KVM powered only through the keyboard ports ? Maybe it needs more power than it is getting to operate properly from the converted port .

darry wrote:

ocdmonkey wrote:

I'm wanting to use my new 5160 with a PS/2 KVM switch, but it refuses to recognize the keyboard with either of the KVM switches I have on hand. I'm using an adapter cable to convert the PS/2 keyboard connection into the AT DIN connection and it works just fine if I plug the keyboard directly into it, but going through the switch I always get an error after POST. The switch works just fine with a computer with a PS/2 connection. Any ideas?

Is the KVM powered only through the keyboard ports ? Maybe it needs more power than it is getting to operate properly from the converted port .

That was one of my first thoughts too, but I tried it even with the KVM switch plugged in and kept getting the same result. The manual I found online for the switch (well, more another switch from the same family: the main one I've been using is a Belkin OmniView SE 4-port), and it references adapter cables for connecting it to a computer with an AT keyboard connector, so the switch should be designed for use-cases such as this (even has serial connections for serial mice). The only thing I can figure is that maybe there is some weird incompatibility with my specific adapter, but that doesn't make sense since a quick google search suggests PS/2 and DIN5 have fairly 1 to 1 pinouts, unless there's some weirdness going on with the "unused" pin 3 on the DIN 5 connector? A similar thing happens with the VGA card I have in it. Since my monitor is missing the "Monitor ID" pins it just assumes it's monochrome, unless it goes through the switch in which case I get color.

This may sound weird but I've seen it working for a similar case: Connect an ATX machine to the same KVM, turn it on, switch to the 5160, turn the 5160 on. Not saying that it'll work, just a quick thing to try.

konc wrote:

This may sound weird but I've seen it working for a similar case: Connect an ATX machine to the same KVM, turn it on, switch to the 5160, turn the 5160 on. Not saying that it'll work, just a quick thing to try.

Well I'm not sure if it's an ATX machine, but I tried that with my HP Vectra and it didn't change anything.

Are both KVM's Belkin? maybe the 5160 doesn't like that brad of KVM's?
I've got a video card that doesn't like my 8 port Compaq KVM but works happily on a cheap no name 4 port KVM.
Both happily work with my sole computer that needs the Din - PS2 adapter though.

I found out what's going on. See, the keyboard I'm using is a Model M, and apparently most PS/2 keyboards use the AT protocol instead of the XT protocol, which the 5160 is not compatible with (the KVM's documentation refers to the connector as an AT connector, which should have tipped me off). Apparently an active adapter can be made (here's a vcfed.org thread about it), which I do plan on trying myself but for now this computer has been such a pain to get working that I'm just going to manually connect the keyboard cable from the Model M's side whenever I switch computers. If anyone knows anything about programming EPROM's, and what to look for in an EPROM programmer, I wouldn't mind getting some help for what to look at for when I do end up taking on that project.